Gaza Peace plan
Can the Gaza peace plan move forward?
Can the Gaza peace plan move forward?
One of the hardest things about covering the war in Gaza is that Israel does not allow any journalists in, except when accompanied by the military. But my colleagues in the region have built up a wide network of sources on all sides.
My colleague Adam Rasgon in Tel Aviv told me about a recent meeting he had with Husam Badran, a senior Hamas official in Doha. Badran told him that Hamas was prepared to discuss the future of its weapons — but only in the context of “serious” talks about three other things: a full Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip; a total end to Israel’s military operations in Gaza; and the establishment of a Palestinian state in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem.
Adam’s reporting shows just how complex the process of moving forward with peace is shaping up to be.
Katrin: It’s been two months since the cease-fire deal was signed. What still needs to happen to move forward?
Adam: Many things still need to happen. But at the moment, the U.S., along with other members of the international community, is trying to make progress on something called an International Stabilization Force. But it’s going slowly, and no country has publicly committed to sending forces.
What are the sticking points?
The hardest part is the question of Hamas’s weapons. Israel says Gaza needs to be totally demilitarized. The Trump peace plan says that, too. And Hamas has not publicly committed to that.
The Trump plan is effectively asking Hamas to surrender, and Hamas, at least so far, has not accepted that. They’ve given up some of their leverage. They gave up all the hostages and hostage bodies except one that they’re still looking for. But disarmament is a very hot-button issue for them.
What distinguishes Hamas in Palestinian politics is that they fight Israel with weapons. It’s what makes them different from the Palestinian Authority, the internationally backed government administering parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
So in a sense, if it disarmed, Hamas would be giving up a core part of its ideology and identity. They also argue that there are people with grievances in Gaza who want to settle scores with them, so they need weapons for self-defense.
It’s a super complicated question. Lire la suite »
TANIKO Madagascar 